Q. Consider the following statements:
- Sangam literature is a good source of information for the life in Tamil Nadu during the early years of Christian era.
- Arthashastra is a secular literature which was written by Kautilya.
- The very rigid social structure of medieval period indicate that Dharma sutras were compiled in medieval times.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Answer:
1 and 2 Only
Notes: Sangam literature is the earliest Tamil literature. It was produced over centuries and finally compiled up to the 6th century CE. On the basis of the geo-climatic descriptions given in these poems, it is inferred that this literature is useful to study the life in the Deltaic Tamil Nadu in the post-Mauryan Age. So, statement 1 is correct. Kautilya, the minister of Chandragupta Maurya, is widely credited for writing Arthasastra which is focused on the subject of statecraft and deals with other social aspects only as far as it concerns the health of state polity. So, statement 2 is correct. ‘Dharma sutras’and ‘Smritis’ along with their commentaries are collectively called ‘Dharma Shastras’. The Dharma sutras were compiled during 500-200 BCE and important Smritis were compiled later up till the Gupta period. These were followed by their commentaries that were composed up to the medieval period. So, statement 3 is incorrect.